Having had the week off to slow down and re-energize I found myself being more and more focused on the babes that have died and those that survived the residential schools. Last week everyone was buzzing about trying to find orange shirts and I found I was one of those in desperate need of one of my own.
Not being someone that wears orange I figured I’d just get one for the day. As I was looking for shirts and trying them on, I remember the words that Phyllis Webstad said at six years old when she found hers “I picked out a shiny orange one and it was bright and exciting”. Funny thing….I felt the same after having tried five different ones and had to have them all.
Therefore I wore one each day leading up to today and as I pulled each over my head, I reflected and honoured not only Phyllis and what she stands for but also for the babes that died and those that survived the residential schools.
Each day my heart hurt for them a little more. September 30th went from being Orange Shirt Day, to today marking the first day we observe “National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Day”. Because it has to be about acknowledging the truth of what happened and ensuring the right thing gets done to reconcile it. As people that live in Canada, whether Canadian or not, we must do better going forward.
This week I took time to read and learn about the ancestors that lived on the land I live on in Maple Ridge, British Columbia. This meant researching the Katzie First Nation People, which archeological data shows have been the stewards of this land for over 10,000 years.
The Katzie people of the lower Fraser Valley are part of the Sto:lo group of peoples, and the Coast Salish language family. They provide band government for those living in the Pitt and Alouette watersheds and were historically linked with the Musqueam, the Kwantlen and the Nicomekl people.
It is written, long before any other human community the creator created five communities each with its own chief in the Lower Fraser Region. The communities are known as Pitt Lake, Sheridan Hill, Port Hammond, Port Roberts and Point Grey. It is believed when first created there was only clams and mussels in the river and along the seashore. The creator gave the five chiefs gifts and powers to bequeath to those that followed - fish, birds and land animals.
It isn’t easy finding data on Katzie people as the first written record of history was documented by Anthropologist Diamond Jenness, when he took the verbatim account of Peter Pierre in 1936 and published “The Faith of the Coast Salish Indian” in 1955. Faith had so much to do with how these people came to be and I found it incredibly interesting.
The Katzie are the direct descendants of the first five community of people.
Katzie people descended primarily from Oe’lecten and his people, and were created at south shore of Pitt Lake
Swaneset and his people were created at Sheridan Hill
Xwoe’pecten and his people, lived at Port Hammond, joined with Swaneset’s people at Katzie, but later moved to what is now known as New Westminster and gave rise to the Kwantlen people
Smakwec and his people, lived at Port Roberts and were closely linked to the Katzie people.
The Nicomekl as a distinct people vanished during the 1700’s smallpox epidemic
C’simlenexw and his people, lived at Point Grey are known as the Musqueam.
The name “Katzie” derives its name from the Halqemeylem (a dialect of Halkomelem) language – which translates for a type of moss
Katzie people grew cranberries and wapato – a potato-like tuber grown in the wetlands
With the arrival of the Hudson Bay Company in the early 1820’s, the Katzie people began trading their wapato for shellfish and other saltwater items. Population declines, confinement to reserves, and land preemption by non-native settlers brought the end to Katzie’s traditional agrarian pursuits
The mouth of the Pitt River contains several important archeological sites, as this was a major sockeye fishing ground for the Katzie people
More than any other aspect of settlement by non-native, epidemic diseases such as small-pox, TB, influenza and measles diminished the size and influence of the Katzie people in the Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge area as most indigenous people were not immune to the disease. However the Europeans had developed a resistance.
When building the Golden Ears Bridge in Maple Ridge, they discovered a large archeological site within the Katzie First Nation’s Traditional Territory. They discovered thousands of pottery shards, metal implements and preserved 3,600 year old wapato. The bog conditions preserved these very well.
Currently there are 626 Katzie First Nations people registered
Currently there is one Chief (Grace George) and four councilors that make up their governing body
I’m absolutely certain that every time I hear about residential schools and my heart hurts is because I’m a mother and a grandmother. Our instinct and our duty is to protect our children and our grandchildren. What we are hearing about the horrors that occurred in the school system that was supposed to protect those children from harm let alone death is beyond words.
Yes we have been hearing about reconciliation for years but not until the first 215 bodies that were found at Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation in Kamloops in May, did it become real for me. Since then I’ve been fixed on hearing what our government, the churches and the people impacted have to say. The story seems like it should be a movie not real life, but here we are.
Yesterday, 6,128 ribbons were placed in the soil at the Vancouver Art Gallery to commemorate the children that died in residential schools and were found buried in unmarked graves. How many more will be found before it is over. Heart breaking is all I can say…..
Today, wear your orange shirt proudly in honour of the babes that have no voice and those that have endured much hardship because of what they went through when they were young. Snuggle your own kids or grandkids a little tighter, and let them know you love them, but most of all protect them and those that can’t protect themselves. I've worn my shirts proudly over the past five days!
I will continue to read the history the first people of Canada so I can have the answers when my grandchildren ask, but most importantly to ensure I never forget why we are blessed to live in such a wonderful country, because they paved the way. My heart hurts today and that is a good thing. Compassion and loving is what makes us heal.
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